Mississippi AG: No prosecution plan in Emmett Till lynching
2 years, 5 months ago

Mississippi AG: No prosecution plan in Emmett Till lynching

Associated Press  

— Mississippi’s top legal official has no plan to prosecute the white woman whose accusation set off the lynching of Black teenager Emmett Till nearly 70 years ago, an aide said Friday following revelations about an unserved arrest warrant and a newly revealed memoir by the woman. Williams also said Fitch’s office has not been in contact with Leflore County District Attorney Dewayne Richardson, the local prosecutor who would be responsible for pursuing any case against Carolyn Bryant Donham. The Justice Department previously investigated without filing charges and closed the case, Williams said, referring to the government’s decision in December to end its most recent review of the infamous slaying. Deborah Watts, a cousin of Till who leads the Emmett Till Legacy Foundation, said the unserved arrest warrant and memoir are new evidence that show Donham’s involvement in the case.

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History of this topic

White woman whose claim caused Emmett Till murder has died
1 year, 7 months ago

White woman whose claim caused Emmett Till murder has died

Associated Press  

— The white woman who accused Black teenager Emmett Till of whistling at and accosting her in Mississippi in 1955 — causing his lynching, which galvanized a generation of activists to rise up in the Civil Rights Movement — has died at 88. Wheeler Parker, a cousin of Till who was there, has said Till whistled at the woman, an …

US woman whose accusation led to Emmett Till murder dies
1 year, 7 months ago

US woman whose accusation led to Emmett Till murder dies

Al Jazeera  

The brutality of Till’s 1955 lynching, on display at his open-casket funeral, galvanised the US civil rights movement. The white woman who accused Black teenager Emmett Till of making improper advances before he was lynched in Mississippi in 1955 has died in hospice care in the United States, a coroner’s report shows. The Reverend Wheeler Parker, Till’s cousin who was …

Carolyn Bryant Donham, woman whose accusation led to Emmett Till’s lynching, dies
1 year, 7 months ago

Carolyn Bryant Donham, woman whose accusation led to Emmett Till’s lynching, dies

LA Times  

Milam, left, and his wife sit to the left of Carolyn Bryant and Roy Bryant in a Mississippi courtroom in September 1955. The white woman who accused Black teenager Emmett Till of making improper advances before he was lynched in Mississippi in 1955 has died in hospice care in Louisiana, a coroner’s report shows. Donham died Tuesday night in Westlake, …

Emmett Till’s relatives lead protest to home of woman whose accusations led to his murder: ‘Justice was never served’
2 years ago

Emmett Till’s relatives lead protest to home of woman whose accusations led to his murder: ‘Justice was never served’

The Independent  

The latest headlines from our reporters across the US sent straight to your inbox each weekday Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US Your briefing on the latest headlines from across the US SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy Relatives of Emmett Till …

Emmett Till movie shown in Black town pivotal to the story
2 years, 1 month ago

Emmett Till movie shown in Black town pivotal to the story

Associated Press  

— The tiny, all-Black town of Mound Bayou became a safe haven for Emmett Till’s mother as she traveled to Mississippi to testify in the murder trial of two white men who lynched her son in 1955. Hundreds of people — a good portion of Mound Bayou’s 1,500 residents — turned out Thursday evening to watch the movie “Till.” The …

‘Change has come': Mississippi unveils Emmett Till statue
2 years, 2 months ago

‘Change has come': Mississippi unveils Emmett Till statue

Associated Press  

— Hundreds of people applauded — and some wiped away tears — as a Mississippi community unveiled a larger-than-life statue of Emmett Till on Friday, not far from where white men kidnapped and killed the Black teenager over accusations he had flirted with a white woman in a country store. Speaking of Till’s mother she said: “Just to imagine the …

A grand jury declined to indict a woman whose accusations set off Emmett Till killing
2 years, 4 months ago

A grand jury declined to indict a woman whose accusations set off Emmett Till killing

NPR  

A grand jury declined to indict a woman whose accusations set off Emmett Till killing Enlarge this image toggle caption Gene Herrick/AP Gene Herrick/AP JACKSON, Miss. — A Mississippi grand jury has declined to indict the white woman whose accusation set off the lynching of Black teenager Emmett Till nearly 70 years ago, most likely closing the case that shocked …

Grand jury declines to indict woman, 87, whose accusation led to Emmett Till’s killing
2 years, 4 months ago

Grand jury declines to indict woman, 87, whose accusation led to Emmett Till’s killing

LA Times  

A grand jury in Mississippi has declined to indict the white woman whose accusation set off the lynching of Black teenager Emmett Till nearly 70 years ago, despite revelations about an unserved arrest warrant and a newly revealed memoir by the woman, a prosecutor said Tuesday. After hearing more than seven hours of testimony from investigators and witnesses, a Leflore …

Emmett Till accuser, in memoir, denies wanting teen killed
2 years, 5 months ago

Emmett Till accuser, in memoir, denies wanting teen killed

Associated Press  

DURHAM, N.C. — The white woman who accused Black teenager Emmett Till of making improper advances before he was lynched in Mississippi in 1955 says she neither identified him to the killers nor wanted him murdered. “But this is probably the last chance for an indictment in this case.” A cousin of Till who leads the Emmett Till Legacy Foundation, …

Emmett Till accuser, in memoir, denies wanting teen killed
2 years, 5 months ago

Emmett Till accuser, in memoir, denies wanting teen killed

Al Jazeera  

Carolyn Bryant Donham says she tried to help Till after her husband and brother-in-law abducted the teen. “But this is probably the last chance for an indictment in this case.” A cousin of Till who leads the Emmett Till Legacy Foundation, Deborah Watts, said the memoir is new evidence that shows Donham’s involvement in the case and is particularly important …

Emmett Till's family says authorities are protecting the woman accused in his death
2 years, 5 months ago

Emmett Till's family says authorities are protecting the woman accused in his death

NPR  

Emmett Till's family says authorities are protecting the woman accused in his death Enlarge this image toggle caption Natasha Moustache/Getty Images Natasha Moustache/Getty Images Days after the discovery of an unserved warrant from 1955, advocates and relatives of Emmett Till say they are pressing authorities to arrest and charge the white woman who may be responsible for his murder and …

Emmett Till case warrant from 1955 found, family seeks arrest
2 years, 5 months ago

Emmett Till case warrant from 1955 found, family seeks arrest

Al Jazeera  

Relatives of the lynched Black teenager call for the woman to be charged with his kidnapping, nearly 70 years after the crime. A team searching a Mississippi court basement for evidence about the lynching of Black teenager Emmett Till has found the unserved warrant charging a white woman in his 1955 kidnapping, and relatives of the victim want authorities to …

1955 warrant in Emmett Till case found, family seeks arrest
2 years, 5 months ago

1955 warrant in Emmett Till case found, family seeks arrest

Associated Press  

— A team searching a Mississippi courthouse basement for evidence about the lynching of Black teenager Emmett Till has found the unserved warrant charging a white woman in his 1955 kidnapping, and relatives of the victim want authorities to finally arrest her nearly 70 years later. The arrest warrant against Donham was publicized at the time, but the Leflore County …

Emmett Till's family seeks the arrest of a woman after a 1955 warrant is found
2 years, 5 months ago

Emmett Till's family seeks the arrest of a woman after a 1955 warrant is found

NPR  

Emmett Till's family seeks the arrest of a woman after a 1955 warrant is found Enlarge this image toggle caption AP AP A team searching a Mississippi courthouse basement for evidence about the lynching of Black teenager Emmett Till has found the unserved warrant charging a white woman in his 1955 kidnapping, and relatives of the victim want authorities to …

1955 warrant in Emmett Till case found; family seeks arrest
2 years, 5 months ago

1955 warrant in Emmett Till case found; family seeks arrest

LA Times  

An undated portrait of Emmett Louis Till, 14, whose weighted-down body was found in the Tallahatchie River near the Delta community of Money, Miss., on Aug. 31, 1955. A team searching a Mississippi courthouse basement for evidence about the lynching of Black teenager Emmett Till has found the unserved warrant charging a white woman in his 1955 kidnapping, and relatives …

Till relatives seek accuser’s prosecution in 1955 kidnapping
2 years, 8 months ago

Till relatives seek accuser’s prosecution in 1955 kidnapping

Associated Press  

Stymied in their calls for a renewed investigation into the killing of Emmett Till, relatives and activists are advocating another possible path toward accountability in Mississippi: They want authorities to launch a kidnapping prosecution against the woman who set off the lynching by accusing the Black Chicago teen of improper advances in 1955. She did not seem to know she …

Emmett Till relatives seek renewed probe of ’55 lynching
2 years, 9 months ago

Emmett Till relatives seek renewed probe of ’55 lynching

Associated Press  

— Relatives of Emmett Till joined with supporters Friday in asking authorities to reverse their decision to close an investigation of the Black teenager’s 1955 lynching and instead prosecute a white woman at the center of the case from the very beginning. Authorities have known for decades that Carolyn Bryant Donham, now in her 80s and living in North Carolina, …

Emmett Till’s relatives push for renewed probe into 1955 lynching
2 years, 9 months ago

Emmett Till’s relatives push for renewed probe into 1955 lynching

Al Jazeera  

The abduction, torture and murder of the Black teenager from Chicago decades ago galvanised the US civil rights movement. Relatives of Emmett Till, a Black teenager whose 1955 lynching propelled the United States civil rights movement, have joined supporters in asking authorities to reverse their decision to close an investigation into the killing. US authorities have known for decades that …

Why is there still no justice for Emmett Till?
2 years, 11 months ago

Why is there still no justice for Emmett Till?

Al Jazeera  

The Jim Crow era may be gone but its spirit is alive and well. White womanhood and keeping Black men ‘in their place’ Sixty-six years ago, Till’s mutilated body was fished out of the Tallahatchie River in Mississippi. I’m likely to kill him.” Keeping Black men in their place was central to how white America enforced anti-Black racism and designed …

Emmett Till investigation closed by feds; no new charges
3 years ago

Emmett Till investigation closed by feds; no new charges

Associated Press  

— The U.S. Justice Department said Monday it is ending its investigation into the 1955 lynching of Emmett Till, the Black teenager from Chicago who was abducted, tortured and killed after witnesses said he whistled at a white woman in Mississippi. Officials also said that historian Timothy B. Tyson, the author of 2017’s “The Blood of Emmett Till,” was unable …

US Justice Dept closes Emmett Till lynching case without charges
3 years ago

US Justice Dept closes Emmett Till lynching case without charges

Al Jazeera  

No one has been convicted in the 1955 abduction, torture and killing of 14-year-old Emmett Till in Mississippi. The United States Justice Department has said it is ending a reopened investigation into the 1955 lynching of 14-year-old Emmett Till in Mississippi. The Justice Department had most recently reopened the investigation in 2018, a year after a 2017 book quoted Carolyn …

Report: Till slaying still being investigated 65 years later
3 years, 5 months ago

Report: Till slaying still being investigated 65 years later

Associated Press  

The Justice Department is continuing its investigation into the killing of Emmett Till, the Black teenager whose slaying 65 years ago in Mississippi sparked outrage and illustrated the brutality of racism in the segregated South. The department’s latest report on civil rights cold cases, released late last month, lists three investigations dating back decades that were closed because witnesses or …

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